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BIM and Facility management

BIM (Building Information Modeling) is the efficient management of the life-cycle of the built environment supported by digital technology.

This article analyzes, to date, the relationship between BIM and Facility management.

BIM can provide huge benefits to the stakeholders in all phases of the building process – Planning; Design; Construction; and Operations and Maintenance.

The Operation & Maintenance (O&M) phase spans a very long period. O&M costs far exceed those of any previous phase, averaging 70% of total life-cycle costs.

The adoption of digital processes and methodologies supported by a robust and reliable information system such as BIM, and the associated implementation of LEAN processes,  enables significantly improve financial and physical performance outcomes.   Overall productivity and user physical asset performance are measurably improved.

To do so, however, it needs to operate in a Common Data Environment (CDE), based on LEAN and other process management practices that fully exploit the best available technologies.

In the O&M phase, given the high financial resources required to maintain the building within the required quality and standard regulations, even a small increase in efficiency widely justifies the effort required to introduce new digital management tools, methods, and processes.

The real benefits of the “BIM method” will come when it will finally be used for real estate life-cycle management.

The BIM adoption  in the O&M phase.

A recent survey held during the 2018 Construction research congress* asked more than 100 industry experts to identify the major trends underway in the construction sector.

As shown in the figures below, around half of the participants were project manager or assistant project manager.

Approximately 60% had more than 10 years of experience in the construction industry.

52% reported having experience with BIM, while simulation modelling and AR/VR had the lowest number with only 11%.

In response to the question about ranking the Technology Trends on their effectiveness when integrated with Data Analytics concepts, BIM turned out to be the first-ranked technology  see figure below.

Relationship between BIM and Facility Management

In this scenario, the need to address the issue of the relationship between BIM and Facility Management appears more relevant than ever.

BIM for Facility Management represents the final step, the point of arrival where all information and data, consciously structured, from the beginning of the process, become an integral part of the management and maintenance of a building.

The Facility Manager is no longer responsible for simply “changing light bulbs” or for maintaining elevators but is an active part of a new culture of collaboration, environmental sustainability, information sharing and innovative initiatives.

Owners and investors have clear the potential of the BIM within the construction process and understand its potential even in the O&M phase.

The main issue is not on the side of the owners, willing to invest in exchange for an economic return, but on the side of the Facility Managers who only today have begun to approach the theme of BIM and Facility Management.

The real benefits of the “BIM method” will come when it will finally be used for real estate management.

BiC-6D is part of the overall vision of Lemsys which aims to create a solution’s collection dedicated to the individual phases building integrated with the Building in the Cloud collaboration platform.

The additional modules are intended to cover, with the common denominator of the BIM Model, all the phases of the processes necessary for the correct building’s life-cycle.

More information about BiC-6D?

* Full report: https://buildingincloud.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/the-status-quo-and-future-potentials-of-data-analytics-in-aecfm-a-quantitative-analysis-of-academic-research-and-industry-outlook-1.pdf